Next Generation
by Wild Way Force
Summary: Basil figured out what was causing time to freak out but now he's ready to freak out. Now he and his friends must fight to prove they are worthy of holding the rings that could set not just the world's, but time and space's fate as well. Not to mention that the Time Agency is on his tail for allegedly breaking a serious time law. Sequel to Moon Mind.
1. Chapter 1

It has been a week since the adventure with time travel. And things were slowly adjusting back to normal. Ok, so maybe not normal but a new normal. They still had to go to school the next day which Basil was still a bit upset about. He was tired from all he went through and he missed the no uniform day. Dad even dropped them off to make sure they got there.

"Come on Matt let's go." Basil called from the end of the kitchen with his school bag over his shoulder. Matt drained the rest of the milk in his bowl into his mouth and ran over.

"Have a good day!" Mom called.

"Don't get sucked back into time again." Bridgette joked. When she heard that they got to skip a day of school and got to travel through time at dinner they afternoon had when they got back, she was upset she didn't get to go. For that she now pokes fun at them. Just like they promised, Dad, Matt, and himself haven't told Mom or Bridgette about him _dying_ or the new _souvenirs_ they got. Either they haven't noticed the rings and/or the boxes or they just don't care. They had a harder time hiding Matt's GK's from them. He couldn't just walk in the door caring them on his side without explaining the other secrets. Before they walked in the house they hid them under porch stairs in the backyard. Later that night they came back for them and now they were hiding somewhere in Matt's room, where he claims Mom and Bridgette will never find them. _So far so good._

"Have a good day guys." Dad came down the stairs trying to tie his tie around his midnight blue shirt's collar with a hair brush in his hand. It was rare to see Dad so dressed up. That only happened for special events or a very important meeting.

"Got something going on today?" Matt asked. Dad walked into the kitchen still trying to get his mess sorted out.

"I got a meeting with the Time Agency heads about what happened and give them my account for it." He explained as Mom helped him with his tie so he could brush his hair.

"Best of luck." Basil said.

"Thanks. I have a feeling I'm going to need it." Dad gave him a side glance. Matt and Basil waved so long and headed for the front door. Everything looked so normal like nothing ever happened. Birds chirped, people walked along the sidewalk, store owners started opening up shops. It was strange to have everything so peaceful. But a feeling kept nagging at him that it wouldn't stay this way. So he tried his best to enjoy the calm. Students flowed into the school like every other day. They met up with the others in the usual spot next in the hall.

"Yo! Matt! Basil!" Cooper greeted as they approached.

"Good morning." Kayson said.

"Morning." Basil greeted back for the both of them.

"I can't believe that's it's only Tuesday. This week is taking forever!" Rease complained.

"For once we agree." Silvia sighed.

"I never thought I hear that." Basil joked. They all started laughing. He looked around at his group of close friends. It was amazing how a dangerous turn of events can bring people so close together. Then the bell ring signaling class would be starting in a few minutes.

"Well see you guys later!" Wes said and he and Matt walked off.

"Boss I'll meet you at lunch!" Rease said. Kayson nodded in acknowledgement then Rease went to class.

"Let's get going Basil." Silvia told him.

"Right." He agreed walking with her. They entered the already crowded room and took their seats. Basil took his seat next to the window and took out his stuff. The final bell rang and their teacher, Mr. Shambles walked in.

"Good morning class! Let's have another fabulous day!" He said just like every morning.

"Now let's dive right into the fun of math!" Mr. Shambles said way too excited. Basil opened his notebook to a blank page but wasn't really listening. He glanced over at Silvia seating a couple seats over, and she already looked board. It only took fifteen minutes for Basil to completely lose interest in the lecture. Between doodling in the boarders and looking up at the board and actually taking notes, he looked out the window to see a P.E class was out and playing soccer in the field in the P.E uniforms. _Hey it's Kayson._ Basil spotted him standing alone near the edge of field. Someone kicked the ball hard and it went speeding in the air. Then smashed into Kayson's face knocking him off his feet. _I guess when he's not using the ring he just an average kid._ He looked back at the down Kayson who seemed dazed. _Maybe slightly a less than average._

The rest of the day went on like any other. And finally the ending bell rang.

"Ready to go?" Silvia walked up to him.

"Yea. I just need to visit my locker first." Basil answered getting up grabbing his bag. They started making it a tradition to exit together since they live in the similar direction. But on the way to his locker they came across a familiar scene. Marris and his pals were picking on someone. When he looked closer it turned out to be Kayson.

"Hey Marris! Quit it!" Basil called him out. He turned around not happy.

"Hey Seasoning, I was just about to come over and see ya at your locker!" Marris taunted.

"Back off you over grown rat!" Silvia warned. Basil took a step forward,

"Pick on someone you know can fight back." Marris' lackeys started circling around. _Really we're doing this all over again?_ Marris took a swing but Basil was still a step ahead. He ducked under the punch and bolted through a weak spot in the circle.

"Basil!" Kayson called after him but he kept running. _Lose them, get to my locker and head home. So Matt and the others will be waiting for about seven extra minutes._


	2. Chapter 2

Basil skidded around the corner and hid behind the wall his back pressed up against the lockers. Marris and his friends kept right on running. _Works like a charm!_ He smiled and walked to his locker. It was a quick swap of things and he was out the door with the others waiting for him.

"Basil, I'm glad to see you're alright." Kayson said as he walked up.

"Don't worry about it. I have plenty of experience of dealing with him." He reassured.

"Pht! Who do those punks think they are? Picking on the Boss." Rease said.

"Well with that out of the way, let's get going!" Cooper changed the subject. They were part of the last group of people leaving the grounds, so it was spacious and fairly quiet.

They stopped at an intersection to see them off.

"Well this is our stop. See you guys tomorrow." Matt spoke for both of them. They said their good-byes and went their separate ways. The walk became really quiet without the others chatting around.

"I wonder how Dad's meeting went. He seemed a bit nervous." Matt stretched his arms over his head like he hadn't had a care in the world.

"Don't know. Guess we'll find out at dinner." Basil replied.

"Yo Moon Guardian and subordinate." A voice stopped them dead cold. A man was standing in their way staring at them. Scratch that not a man he was still young, high school maybe? No he wasn't wearing a uniform. College? But how would he know he was the Moon Guardian?

"Can we help you?" Matt dropped his arms sounding serious. But before the guy could answer Basil jumped in with another question,

"How do you know about that?" The man smiled.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Reiji. I'll be your team's advisor during the ring conflict." He said. Basil couldn't help but show his surprised reaction. How could this guy know so much? He looked more closely. The man had shaggy pure blond hair and wore normal clothes with a brown jacket.

"See you later Basil, Matt. I need to go introduce myself to the other Elementals." Reiji gave a polite nod then walked off. He watched him until he disappeared around the corner.

"I didn't think we would have to deal with this kind of thing so soon after getting back." Basil noticed that Matt still looked serious. A rare expression that he shows. Basil nodded agreeing. He was still wasn't sure about all of this. Heck, he didn't even know what the job of an Elemental was! He would much rather pretend none of it happened and try going back to be a somewhat normal kid. But that wasn't possible. He didn't think it ever was. Normal kids don't remember the way they were supposed to have died as a baby or have a ring that be lit on fire that was purple, and have a telepathic owl as a partner! But in some way all of it felt right. Like it was meant to be, being the Moon Guardian was who he was always meant to be and time or people couldn't stop him.

"Come on, let's go home." He slapped his shoulder his the back of his hand.

Basil was sitting at his desk trying to do his homework but he was too distracted. Giving up he tossed the pencil on the desk, leaning against the back of his chair. The sun was still out so he couldn't communicate with the moon. His bedroom door swung open and Matt entered, closing the door in a hurry.

"Have you heard of knocking?" Basil said slightly irritated.

"Sorry but I a text from Cooper saying that everyone is getting online to discuss this Reiji guy." Matt held up the phone as evidence. Basil turned back to the desk and typed his password into his laptop. Instantly he got an invite to join a group conversation. Matt stooped beside him to look at the screen. He clicked the accept button and everyone's face flashed on the screen in neat, orderly boxes.

"Hey Basil, Matt did you guys see this Reiji character?" Cooper asked.

"Yea we were the first ones he talked to." Basil replied.

"I wonder what he meant by he'll be our advisor during the ring conflict." Kayson questioned the group.

"Maybe it has to do with what the voices said that we were candidates and the conflict is how we prove we are the Elementals." He gave his best theory.

"Hey does this have something to do with Gary and Hodge's previous Boss?" Matt turned to face him. When they got to school the day after the whole trip through time they told them what they missed out on.

"Most likely he's the Boss for the other candidate family." Basil responded.

"Whatever this is, it's making me EXTREMELY CONFUSED!" Wes said loudly.

"And there's the whole thing about Kayson not getting his partner." Silvia said.

"That's because the Boss is so strong he doesn't need his partner yet!" Rease defended. All the yelling and raised voiced reminded him that he hadn't seen Miles since he got back.

"Does anyone know what happened to Miles?" He asked.

"Who cares? It's so nice and peaceful without him!" Rease huffed.

"Don't be such a jerk to Miles!" Silvia scowled.

"Why do you care? He's not even here!" Rease shouted.

"He's with us in spirit!" Silvia shouted back. Ok now she was sounding like his mom when Matt's pet bunny, Zip, died when they were five. With the "He's still here in spirit" thing. Matt was so devastated by it that Mom and Dad got him a plush rabbit that looked just like the real Zip. Plush Zip was as precious to Matt as Lil' Owl was to him. Sometimes he would catch Matt taking a nap with it.

"Hey now!" Cooper smiled trying to break up the fight. The fighting eventually stopped.

"All we can do now is wait and see what happens next." Matt spoke. "So until then we just keep going on with our normal lives." Everyone agreed and signed off. Basil closed the laptop's lid. From downstairs there was the sound of the front door opening and closing and Dad's voice.

"Hey Dad's home. Should we tell him?" Matt asked. Basil stayed silent.


	3. Chapter 3

Beside the forks striking the plate, Bridgette was the main thing everyone was listening to. He was debating wither or not he should tell Dad about what happened to him today. _What he knows hardly scratches the surface of what I went through. I guess Matt too, but he wasn't there for the monster fight. But maybe he could find out who this Reiji dude is. Then again he already has his hands full with figuring out what to do about missing kids and damaged history._ He pondered as he thoughtfully chewed on a piece of chicken.

"So I had to explain for what felt like the fifteenth time on how to do it! I don't understand why people bother showing up if they don't listen anyway." Bridgette droned on. He glanced over at Matt who seemed to be day dreaming.

"Oh I get it!" He interrupted Bridgette's babbling mid-sentence. "Basil remember the joke Cooper told at lunch? I finally get it!" Matt laughed.

"Several hours later." Basil joked. Bridgette gave Matt a - _I can't believe you interrupted me with something so idiotic! –_ glare.

"Matt! I was still talking!" She scowled.

"And talking and talking and talking." Basil added.

"Basil!" Mom warned. He shrugged in response. "Anyway how was your day Jess?" Everyone looked at him with curious looks. Dad took his time chewing then swallowing.

"I got a new rookie to train." He said simply.

"Really? At a time like this?" Basil questioned. With time still damaged it seemed like training a rookie was the least of priorities, especially since Dad was so high ranking.

"We're really short-handed with everyone trying to find Gary and Hodge." Dad explained.

"But why you? I thought you were assigned to fix time?" Matt asked. Dad put his fork down and folded his hands, resting his elbows on the table.

"She's only staying at HQ, no time traveling. Too much risk for that." He answered. Rain started to tap against the windows and walls outside the house. Basil forgot they were expecting rain that lasted until midnight tomorrow.

"What about the meeting?" Mom quizzed him now too. Dad leaned back with an exaggerated sigh and rubbed his forehead,

"I have no idea what to say about that! I told them what I knew and they just said they would might call me in for another meeting later on." Mom reached over and rubbed his shoulder sympathetically. He gave her a grateful smile and rested his hand on hers. The tapping on the windows became faster now, harder too. It reminded him a lot of the mood in the room. So he kicked Matt under the table and nodded his head over to the others, signaling him to lighten things up.

The rain still banged at the house as Basil checked to make sure he didn't miss a math question. He could feel the moon but the feeling was weakened with the storm. Then there was a knock at the door. Mom walked in with a white envelope in her hand.

"Hey Bay, with everything I got going on lately I forgot you got mail today." She handed him the white envelope. He flipped it over to find no return address. _Don't open it with her in the room._ The moon faintly told him. She stood their waiting for him to open it up.

"Thanks I'll open it once I'm done here." He placed the letter on the desk.

"If it's something you want to go to let me know so I can put it on the calendar." She walked out leaving the door open. He got up out of his seat and closed the door so he knew he wouldn't have any spying visitors. He looked at the envelope on both sides if he could see something that would give away who sent him the letter. _Didn't Dad, Gary and Hodge send letters to the missing kids to warn them?_ Suddenly he was very afraid of it. He ripped it open as fast as he could. _Just like ripping of a Band-Aid._ The letter was neatly folded into thirds. Basil flipped it opened and Sky flame sparked to life in the top center of the page. No wonder the moon didn't want him to open it with Mom still in the room. If she saw the Sky flame come from a letter he would have _a lot_ of explaining to do.

COME TO CORDOLLO STREET AT 6:30 TOMORROW TO DISCUSS THE FOLLOWINGS OF THE ELEMENTAL RING CONFLICT.

There was no signature. Could it be Kayson or Reiji? None of that sounded right. But who then? He quickly crossed his room to the other wall that separated his room from Matt's. Basil hit the wall three times telling him to get over here. He couldn't risk going out the door, might run into someone other than Matt. And if they saw the letter with fire coming out of it would just be trouble. A few seconds later his door opened and Matt walked in, hurriedly closing the door behind him. He had headphones around his neck and a comic book in his hand.

"What's up?" Matt questioned. Basil showed him the letter. Matt taken back for a second at the sight of the flame then read it.

"Do we tell Dad?" He finally asked. Basil shook his head,

"No. He'll want to report it to the time agency and then it will be stakeout. We'll just go with the others." There was a knock at the door startling both of them.

"Basil are in there? I need to know something." Mom's voice came from the other side of the door. They exchanged a look that screamed, _how could she have known?!_ As Matt scrambled to hide the letter in his comic book, Basil cautiously opened the door just wide enough for his head.

"Yea?" Trying to sound suspicious or guilty.

"I need to know if you have any laundry." She lifted up the laundry bin in her hands. Basil wanted to break down in a nervous laugh but he held it together and fully opened the door for her. Then she slouched the bin her arms when she Matt. _Oh no! Is the letter not fully tucked away? Is the flame coming out?_ He panicked thinking of an excuse.

"Matt did you finish your homework? You know you're not allowed to read comics until you finished your homework." She asked.

"Oh I am so done with homework!" He replied. _Don't say it like that! She'll get suspicious!_

"Then I you wouldn't mind if I quizzed you over it a little later." Mom told him walking to his closet and dumping his clothes in the bin.

"Uh. How's dad doing?" Basil asked getting the topic off of Matt.

"He's fine, just tried from what's going on at his work." Mom kissed the top of his head. She was just about out the door, handle in the hand when she stopped and turned around.

"Oh yeah I almost forgot to tell you but Basil your practice has been bumped up tomorrow. So you'll have to take your gear to school tomorrow." Then she closed. That couldn't be a coincidence! His practice being pushed up just so he could have enough time to the meeting point.

Basil could barely get any sleep that night or pay attention in class the next. All he could do was think about the meeting and the ring conflict. How many times did his teachers ask if he was still with them? Fifteen? Fifty? At lunch they all agreed to meet up at the location a bit earlier so they could group up if they need to, and that Matt should come along to incase things took a bad turn. By the time he was leaving the school building the sun was out, far earlier than predicted. He was all excited about going home to zone out in peace but then he remembered his practice time got moved up.

"Hey Basil!" He heard Matt call. Basil stopped and waited for him to catch up.

"Do you think it would be a good idea if I brought the GK's?" Matt asked.

"I think you should leave those at home. If someone saw that they might freak out and call the police and that wouldn't end well." He told him honestly.

"Maybe but what if something happens? I won't have any of stopping it." Matt asked worried.

"Don't worry it's just a meeting and I'll be coming home from practice by then and the Metal Edge with me and Kayson will have his gloves." Basil said. Matt gave him an unsure look. He kept forgetting that he wasn't there when Kayson discovered the true power of the gloves. All what he knew about came from him.

"Stop worrying. It's not like you!" Basil put a hand on his shoulder. "See ya later!" He waved then walked away.

At practice he was so eager to get the meeting that he was practically useless. He missed the easier targets and got tripped up by simple foot movements. His eyes kept checking the clock on the wall every other minute waiting till practice was over. With the schedule change he forgot that now he had an hour and a half till six. So he walked home in hopes he had time to shower and think if he needed to bring the Metal Edge with him. By the time he got to the front door he only wasted twenty minutes. He opened the door and walked into the kitchen finding Matt sitting at the counter doing homework, back in his normal clothes. Bridgette was in the living room playing a videogame on the TV.

"So you finally figured it out huh?" Matt smirked. "The great Basil miscounted!"

"Ah! Shut it." He spat and went upstairs. Basil let the water pelt the shampoo off his hair as he stood there scrubbing his head. _The letter said to meet at Cordollo Street. That is a normal peaceful street. Short too._ You could see the other end from standing at the other. How were they going to explain that they had to leave dinner very early to go to a secret meeting with who-knows? Maybe they could say they were meeting up with friends for a group project? The shampoo was completely out of his hair so pumped out some conditioner in his hand from a family size bottle and ran in through his hair. Letting the water to rinse it out he started having second doubts about all of this. Was he really going to go through with this? This wasn't going to be some conference were they all sit down at a table and talk everything out. No, if anything this was going to be bloody. He remembered what Matt told him about Gary and Hodge's old boss said, "Tell the Elementals, especially that whelp of Sky, that they don't stand a chance!" Their old boss was going to be there and defiantly was the kind to talk about things! _This a conflict for the_ rings _! He's going to have guardians of his own, and I bet they're strong._ Basil looked at the shower curtain, but really he was looking through it at the counter where his ring sat. He ran his hands through his a couple of times to make sure all of the conditioner was all out, then turned off the water. Letting the water drip off, he grabbed his towel of the rack and started drying off. _I have to go. The others will be there and they might need my help or support._ Basil eyed the ring that sat there patiently.


	4. Chapter 4

He walked down the stairs smelling something good cooking. Matt was resting his head on the counter watching Mom stir something a pot.

"Can I just have a bite? A small one? Please!" He begged.

"Sorry Matt but you're going to have to wait till dinner." Mom told him. Matt whined in response, smacking his lips together in a hungry form.

"Hey Mom I actually need to meet up with a friend to help him with something at six fifteen. And we need Matt." He took a stool next to Matt. Mom turned from the stove to look at him with both eyes.

"Really? Why didn't you tell me earlier?" She questioned.

"Matt was supposed to tell since I was in the shower. But I guess his stomach took first priority." Basil said. Matt whined again looking at the pot. He did have to admit it smelled really good.

"Why that time? Couldn't you go after dinner?" She quizzed.

"It was the only time available." He replied shrugging.

"Alright but you're staying for the first ten minutes of dinner." Mom told them. The front door opened and closed and Dad walked into the kitchen. He walked around the counter and gave Mom a quick kiss before he went to his office.

"Basil can you go get your sister for dinner?" Mom asked in the tone that told him he didn't have a choice. Basil slid off the chair and went back up the stairs. Her bedroom door was wide open like usual and she was sitting on the bed messing with one of her stuff animals.

"Bridge, dinner." He said from the door frame.

"Give me a sec." She said not looking up.

"What are you doing?" Basil asked.

"Deciding which color bow would look better." Bridgette explained tying a green bow around a toy. Basil looked closer and realized the toy she was tying a bow to was Lil' Owl. Matt's rabbit was sitting next to it. He rushed over and snatched the stuffed animals up before she could finish tying the knot.

"Bridgette, you know you're not allowed in mine or Matt's room without permission!" He said harshly but she gave no reaction. She had been going into their rooms ever since she could walk. They got so sick of it one time he and Matt played a trick on her to teach her a lesson. They hooked up the door handles to a battery so every time she would touch the knobs she would get shocked. In the end she ran crying to Mom and Dad and they got the ' _you two are older than her. You should know better speech._ ' And grounded for a week. Basil went back down stairs with a stuffed animal in each hand. Matt gave him a confused look when he was him.

"Bridgette broke in and stole Zip and Lil' Owl." He explained giving him Zip. Bridgette walked up behind him grinning from ear to ear. Basil glared at her.

"Guys I don't have energy to deal with this today." Dad shook his head from his seat at the dinner table.

"Are you ok?" Basil asked feeling ashamed of his petty squabble. Dad took a deep breath tapped the table with both hands and got up,

"Yea. It's just this whole time crisis and having to train a rookie…You and Matt are leaving in ten minutes to meet up with a friend right?" Basil nodded in reply. They all got their food and took their seats at the table.

"Hey Dad, I have been thinking about this but how is that Basil's here even though he was part of Damage Time after the Time Crash? Shouldn't he not be here?" Bridgette asked way too happy about figuring that out. Basil wasn't sure how he was supposed to react to that.

"I rescued Basil before the Time Crash originally happened so because of that it's part of the reason why Damaged Time lasted longer." He explained.

"Do you regret it?" She instantly asked. Dad looked at her confused,

"Excuse me?"

"Do you regret it?" She repeated. "If you didn't save Basil Damaged Time wouldn't have lasted as long. Then you've could've gone in and rescued the missing kids sooner. And maybe then this whole time crisis wouldn't be so intense."

"No! Not for an instant! Rescuing Basil was one of the smartest things I have ever done!" Dad glared at her putting down his fork to intertwine his fingers, then he turned to look at him, his expression softer. "You belong here!"

"That's right! You're a Burnish. You're our son! No matter what anyone else says!" Mom backed him up.

"But does he? Does Matt? My teacher says time adoptees really don't belong here at least molecularly because those molecules are already being used here by someone else. So wouldn't that be two of the same molecule in the same time? A double's paradox? So shouldn't all time-adoptees be illegal?" Bridgette continued. What was she saying? _Really_ saying?

"Bridgette you're teacher isn't a time agent! She has no idea what she's saying! _You_ wouldn't exists of it wasn't for time travel!" Dad told her strictly trying his very hardest to keep his temper down.

"Mrs. Manver isn't, but her husband is." She shrugged. Dad closed his eyes and took a deep breath seeming to count to five in his head. When he opened his eyes again it seemed to have work. He looked less mad and in more control.

"I never did like Heavor. Never got along, even in the cadet academy." Dad said calmly and picked his fork back up, taking another bite.

"Matt, Basil you two should getting going if you want to be on time to meet with your friend." Mom excused them. Basil nodded and got up. That was the most awkward ten minutes of his life.


	5. Chapter 5

He and Matt walked along in silence. Basil couldn't stop thinking about the conversation at dinner. What did Bridgette mean by bringing that up? Did she not want them around? The evening sun produced a warm glow. They eventually made it to the right street. The others were already there talking to each other.

"I hope we didn't miss it." Matt said in an almost whisper.

"Are we late?" Basil's voice broke up the group.

"No we're still waiting." Kayson told them as they walked up.

"This is boring. Let's do something!" Miles said from Silvia's arms.

"We can't right now. This is important." She told him. Miles pouted clearly unhappy.

"Hey Silvia how did you get Miles here?" Basil asked.

"You're looking at Miles' new babysitter." Silva sounded proud. A shadow covered them from the evening sun. It was shaped like several people put together. They looked up to the roof to see Gary and Hodge's old boss with some dangerous looking people with him. They all wore the same black jacket but other than that there styles were different. The only person Basil could look at was a guy with black muzzle covering his whole mouth. It had a drawing of a nightmare smile around breathing slits. He looked old enough to be a senior in high school or in college but he couldn't be certain of anything. There were patches of hair over his skull that were different colors. Both of his eyes were pure black with no whites or obvious pupils. He was something out of a horror movie.

"So it looks like you got the guts to show up!" The boss smirked.

"Scary!" Miles started to shiver. Two more people landed on the roof next to the boss's. As far as Basil could tell they were identical twins. Same height, thin frame, pink hair, skin tone, and same clothes. White long pants, a black shirt with a short white vest jacket over it, black masks, and black heel boots.

"Thank you all for coming. Now that everyone is here we will being the meeting discussing the conflict of the Elemental rings." Both of them spoke at the same time with the same voice. _Could they be clones?_

"We are the Calvallon, the judges during the ring conflict. Our ruling is the ruling of the last Sky Elemental." One of them spoke. The other one brought out an official looking paper that had a Sky flame in the top center as evidence. "The battle will be between Kayson Sharik and his family versus Vander and his family." _So now we have a name to a face…Vander!_

"At this point we will- who are you?" The one on the left turned and looked down the street. Everyone looked to. A person was walking up to them. Basil had a hard time believing it. It was that Reiji character. Vander looked slightly angered by the sight of Reiji.

"Sorry I'm late. I'm the advisor for Kayson and his family during the conflict." He stopped next to their group. The two nodded in sync.

"Alright then. At this point we will split the rings." They said. The rings suddenly ignited engulfing the whole thing. Basil tried to shut it down but he quickly learned it wasn't him that was doing it. When it died down half of the ring was missing. The flames appeared on Vander and his families fingers. Vander looked almost board when half of the Sky ring appeared on his finger. Basil looked for who was the one who took half of the Moon ring but couldn't find him fast enough.

"The first fight will began at 10:30pm in three days at Scepres Middle." One of the Calvallons said. _The school?_

"The first match will the battle for the Sun ring. This concludes this meeting. Until then." The other finished and they both jumped backwards disappearing on the other side of the house. Vander smirked like he already won the conflict. A light breeze rippled across reflecting the tension. A dead leaf blew across his line of sight and when it crossed Vander and his cronies were gone.

When they got back they found Dad in the living room on his cell phone. His back was towards them so he didn't know they were there.

"Really? You sure?" Dad spoke in the phone. He turned around and spotted them. He gave a quick wave then went to his home office. Before he closed the door they heard him say,

"Are you sure it wasn't an equipment malfunction? We just lived through the last hour and I didn't experience anything wired." The door shut blocking any chance of them hearing anymore of the conversation. They both looked down the hallway were his office was.

"What do you think that was about?" Matt asked.

"The meeting. Us." He answered.

"Should we tell him?" Matt looked at him.

"No. Not yet at least." Basil shook his head. They walked up the stairs and back to their rooms. Basil took a seat in his desk chair and looked out the window. The moon was out and glowing brightly. It was the main source of light in his dark room. He rubbed his face unable to process what was happening. The moon stayed quiet but all he wanted was to enjoy was the soft glow. It was relaxing.

"Thank you." He whispered to it. His door swung open letting in the hallway light and Bridgette.

"Knocking doesn't hurt you know." He looked over at her.

"Mom wants to talk to you." She looked around with a confused look on her face. "Why are you sitting in the dark like an evil villain?" He got up and headed for the door,

"Because to some people it's relaxing just to have natural moon light." Then he decided to have some fun as Basil led her out of his room and closed the door behind him. "And to plot what kind of bug will crawl into your bed." Her eyes went wide and she slapped on the arm. Good thing wasn't she didn't have a lot of muscle.

"Don't you dare!" She warned. He couldn't help but smile. Basil made sure she went into her room before going to the end of the hall and knocking on one of the double doors. He opened it without waiting for an answer. Mom was sitting on the side of the bed with an open box on her lap. It was much brighter in here with all the lights on compared to his room.

"Bridgette said you wanted to see me." He said closing the door behind him. She looked up, smiled, and patted next to her on the bed motioning for him to sit. He walked over cautiously but tried to act casual. When he sat down she looked at him for a minute with a small smile on her face then began to stroke the back of his head. After an awkward moment for him she stopped and looked down at the box on her lap. It was just deep enough Basil couldn't see what was inside.

"Basil, do you know why I wanted to become a doctor?" Mom looked at him.

"To help people." He gave a generic answer. His motto was when he didn't know an answer was to give a generic one. There was moment of pure quiet.

"What's in the box?" He asked breaking the silence. She stuck her hands in and there was a sound of rustling tissue paper. What she brought out surprised him. It a ceramic Chinese style dragon with a sapphire blue body, gold claws, ruby red mane and tail with emerald green eyes. The whole thing was a bit longer than a foot and clearly took a long time to make. He could make out each scale and hair in the mane and tail. The mouth was open wide enough for purl colored teeth.

"This dragon has been in my family since a couple of years before you were born. It's been passed down from generation to generation since then. I used to keep it on the mantle downstairs but when you and Matt started to walk and cause trouble I put it up here but when more things kept breaking I put it in a box for safe keeping. Then we had Bridgette and I forgot about it till I was cleaning the closest this afternoon." Mom admired the dragon in her hands.

"How'd they get it?" Basil inquired. She smiled and drew her legs up on the bed crossing them.

"I'll never forget it. My great-great-great- well a whole lot of greats- grandfather was a doctor and he and his wife went to China to help with a world health program for a couple of months. They went into a small town to give medical service to anyone who needed it. There was this old women they became great friends with. They became very close. When it was time for them to go home the women gave them the figure as a way of saying thank you. They wanted to pay for it but she refused, she said their friendship was enough. Even after they left they were still friends. They even went to her funeral when she died…Now I want you to have it." She handed it to him. It was fairly heavy but it made since for its size.

"Not that I don't appreciate it but shouldn't you be giving this to Bridgette?" He asked keeping his voice low. Mom drew him into a side hug and kissed the side of his head.

"Time adoptee or not you're still my son. And it makes since that you would get it. You two weren't that far apart on the time scale." She let him go. "And it's said to be lucky!" Now it was his turn to smile,

"That makes sense! Dragons are supposed to bring luck and wealth…Do you think it's lucky?"

"Well not long after I got it, you're Dad and I started dating. And my mom found her lost cat when she got it." Mom smiled and shrugged. Maybe this could bring him some luck during the ring conflict. He could really use some luck.

"Thank you but I don't think I should take it. With Bridgette constantly going into my room without me knowing it, it might break." He handed it back to her. She smiled understandingly.

"Ok how about this, I hang onto it till you feel you're ready." Mom offered.

"Deal!" He nodded. She got up and put it on the center of the middle shelf in the built in bookcase.

"Perfect!" Basil smiled.


	6. Chapter 6

He was woken up by his head, he could feel the moon poke his mind awake. It was still black out. The digital clock on the nightstand read 4: 17am. _This better be good!_ Basil scowled tossing the sheets and comforter aside. Here he was awake when the rest of the block was asleep. Then he heard it. The softest whispering. He walked to the door careful not to make a floorboard squeak under the carpet. The door opened nearly silently. It was slightly louder now but he still couldn't tell who the voices belonged to. All the lights were off but that didn't stop the natural moonlight coming through the windows. All the doors were closed too. Everything as it should be. It sounded like the whispering was coming from downstairs. Was it intruders? Should he take the Metal Edge or Lunas's box? Anything besides walking down in just in PJs? He was still wearing half the ring but he didn't know if he could use the flame with it split. _Go._ The moon encouraged. Basil walked over to the stairs avoiding the spots that he knew would creak. Basil stopped at the stairs unsure if he should continue or even if he could. It was impossible to predict if a step would creak or not. With the house so quite any sound could give him away. _What am I doing?! I'm about to face some of the scariest people ever and I'm afraid to walk down my own stairs!_ But he knew the ramifications of just charging down. If it was intruders he could wind up dead. Being that reckless wasn't him. He could turn around, go back down the hall, and get his parents. No, that was just as bad as charging down. Even if he could get into their room without a sound, he wouldn't be able to stop them from just going down. Matt? No. Bridgette? Even worse than waking up Mom and Dad. He was on his own. He took the first step slowly. Nothing. Basil managed to get down to the third last step without any of the floorboards squeaking. The whispering sound was louder now but he still couldn't make anything out. He skipped the next step heading straight for the last one. It let out a soft moan under his second foot. The whispering instantly stopped as did he. Basil swore they could hear his frantic heart beating. It returned a moment later but even quieter than before. _No going back now._ Still the only light he could see was moonlight. Staying next to the wall he went into the dark kitchen but no one was there. Next the den. Nothing. But he did see light coming from Dad's office. Not the entire thing but more than a flashlight, maybe a single lamp? The voices became clearer the closer he got. Basil stopped right next to the door so he could hear but not be seen. His door was a bit ajar so he could hear what the words were clearly now.

"It's possible there's a third person involved in this." It was a voice he knew all too well. Dad.

"Ok who do you think it could be?" It was Mom. What were they doing up so late? And why did the moon want him to hear this? He was relieved it wasn't robbers but somehow this was even more disturbing.

"I don't know. We have to find where it originated from. And that's very difficult to do." Dad sighed. Basil took the risk and glanced in with the corner of his eye to see Dad sitting at his desk with the desk lamp the only source of light. He looked tired and drained but his eyes looked wide awake. Mom was sitting partially on the edge of the desk on Dad's side so her back was towards him.

"How long will it take?" She asked. Dad leaned back in his chair and it swayed side to side slightly.

"Who knows!" He sighed again rubbing his face.

"Hey! Shh! You don't want to wake the kids up do you?" Mom warned.

"Speaking of the kids, how's Basil doing? I get where Bridgette was coming from at dinner in the science realm but that's still no excuse of putting him in that kind of spot!" Dad spun the chair slightly under him. Mom shrugged,

"As far as I know he's fine but that kid is really good at guarding his true thoughts and feelings. Heck! He could be going through the hardest time of his life and we'd never know!" Dad gave a small smile,

"I know what you mean. His mind is more complicated than the whole time crisis! He could be slowly taking over the world and no one would know before it's too late…Basil does have the genes to pull it off." Mom backhanded his shoulder in response. Dad shrugged in apology.

"Basil's biological father and grandparents are notorious criminals in their era. Secrecy is part of his bloodline. So I can't say I'm completely surprised by it." He said weakly.

"I don't care about his DNA! That's not it. Even before he remembered his original fate he was like this…I'm worried about my boy Jess!" She sounded like she was about to cry. Dad stood up and wrapped her in a hug.

"Hey, hey. It's alright. I'm sure it was just a coincidence with Basil and the blank out." He said soothingly rubbing her back. "Come on. Let's go to bed, it's late." When the light went out Basil swiftly got back to the den and pressed his back against the wall. Mom and Dad walked right on by without suspecting a thing. They walked heavily up the stairs and the sounded disappeared. Basil slid his back down the wall till he was sitting on the floor. What could they mean? What could they possibly mean? Did the Time Agency suspect he was responsible for whatever happened to time during the meeting? Surely he didn't do anything illegal. _Could it have been those identical twins? Or maybe Vander?_ His mind became a blank. The shadows added a dark feeling to the soft white light. The worst part was the moon was silent. Basil pushed himself off the floor heading back to his room. He didn't think he could sleep but he didn't want Mom or Dad walking down in the morning finding him sitting here like a zombie.


	7. Chapter 7

Despite his thoughts racing faster than the speed of light he managed to fall asleep. Only to be awoken by his annoying alarm. _I can't believe I actually managed to get some sleep._ He slapped the alarm off getting up. Switching his night clothes for his school uniform, he stepped in front of the mirror to help him with his tie. The words of last night came rushing back. _"Basil's biological father and grandparents are notorious criminals in their era."_ Basil let his hands fall to his side gazing into the mirror. The ends of tie fell around his neck like a scarf. _So this is what a third generation criminal looks like._ He'd never caused mischief. If anything he was better known as a teacher's pet. His gaze dropped. But instead of hitting the floor like he planned it fell on a photo. It was a family photo of the first time they took his telescope out for a test run. The happiest time of his life. Dad was sitting behind him and was messing up his hair with a smiling smirk. He looked…proud. Basil shook his head ashamed of himself. _I'm no criminal! I'm nothing like them!_ He finished his tie, grabbed his bag, and left for the kitchen.

"Morning Bay!" Mom greeted him with a smile from the other side of the counter like it was any other morning in paradise.

"Morning." Basil returned the exchange. He took his seat next to the drowsy looking Matt. His head was propped up and his eyes were half closed. He was drawing circles in his oatmeal with his spoon. Mom handed Basil his own bowl and he started eating. The taste of cinnamon and honey perked him up.

"Matt if you don't eat it here you're just going to eat during the walk to school." Mom put her hands on her hips. "Why are you so tired anyway? Stayed up too late reading comic books again?" Basil forced himself not too spit out any oatmeal as he chuckled.

"No. Just couldn't sleep." Matt yawned. There was a sounds of little feet pounding down on the stairs. Bridgette came over still in her PJ's taking the stool on the other side of Basil.

"Morning Bridgette. How did you sleep?" Mom asked giving her a bowl.

"I had a wired dream where Matt and this other annoying guy from my class, Sam, turned into zombies. I ate them." She replied complete emotionless. Basil couldn't help but spew a bit a bit food back into the bowl trying to contain his laughter so he wouldn't choke. He miraculously managed to sallow so he could laugh freely. Just laughing felt so good. Dad walked in with a smile on his face.

"Now this is a good morning! What did I miss?" He asked wrapping an arm around Mom's shoulders

"Bridgette's bad eating habits." Matt replied. Basil stared to laugh even harder.

"Alright boys get going!" Mom took Matt's bowl and transferred the contents to a to-go container. Basil managed to stop laughing after some deep breaths. He slid off the stool and tossed his bag over his shoulder. Mom shoved the container in Matt's hands once they were empty.

"Be careful out there. It's pretty foggy out. You could almost cut it with a knife." Dad warned. _Fog? At this time of year?_ That was more of a late to start of winter weather. It was still moving from early to mid-fall. Basil looked out the window in the den to see he was right. Nothing but a thick grey.

"Weird. I thought it was supposed to be sunny today." Matt sounded just as surprised as Basil felt. He clearly remember all the weather reports saying it was supposed to be nice.

"Mom can you drive me today? I don't want to walk in that." Bridgette asked. Mom nodded before turning back to them.

"If you don't leave now you're going to risk being late. Matt I know your teacher is not kind to people being late." she waved them out of the kitchen to the front door. The fog was thicker than the window suggested. He could barely see three inches in front of his face. He nearly fell on Matt because he missed the concrete step.

"Well if we're late, at least we have a good excuse." Matt said optimistically.

"This can't be natural. Something's up." Basil killed the mood.

"I hope not. We can't face something new at the same time as the ring conflict." Matt said. They came up to a crosswalk at an intersection. Basil looked up the post hoping to see the traffic lights or the crossing signal but it was masked in the grey.

"Should I still press the button?" Matt asked his thumb ready.

"I don't see what good that would do. We can't see the crossing signal on this one. Let's just cross, we'll hear a car's engine before we see the headlights." Basil took a step onto the street. A bad feeling started taking control. He started wishing he brought the Metal Edge or at least Lunas' box. They might hear a car engine but not attackers on foot.

"New prey!" A scratchy voice hissed. He and Matt instantly stood back to back trying to peer through the never ending grey. Of course he couldn't see where it was coming from but he couldn't pin down the direction either. There was a sound of feet desperately beating on the street. A terrified man appeared running full speed. Or he would've been if he didn't trip. This guy looked like a typical business man in his suit. He looked up to show a beaten face who had a true definition of fear. Matt ran up to him.

"Are you alright?" He bent down to help stand up.

"Please you must help me! I'm being attacked by two criminals!" The man shouted grabbing Matt's shoulders. More sounds of footsteps. The man looked back as if the devil was going to appear. He scrambled between the Matt and Basil before flipping over on his back. Two more people stepped into view. One looked like a pro linebacker making his friend look like a short toothpick. Both wore black hoodies.

"Check it out our luck continues! Two little kids off to school." Toothpick chuckles with delight. So he was the scratchy voice.

"Leave me alone!" The man shouted.

"Sure just give us what you got and we'll be on our way. You too kids!" Linebacker smirked.

"Either you walk away now or you'll be limping away later." Matt glared at the two.


	8. Chapter 8

Toothpick chuckled.

"Yea like we're going to be scared by a couple of kids!" He scoffed. Linebacker took a couple of steps forward till Matt was in arm's length. He reached out to grab him but Matt slapped his hand. Toothpick and Linebacker amazed at the action.

"You're going to regret that kid!" Linebacker glared. He lunged at him but Matt moved out of the way. Basil charged forward and swung his bag at Linebacker's head. It connected at his temple with a sickening pound sound. Linebacker stumbled to the side cursing as he clutched the side of his head.

"Hey, Basil?" Matt side glanced at him.

"Yea, Matt?" Basil asked curious on what he was going to say.

"I think we're going to be late for school." Matt smirked. _Yep that would be correct._ Toothpick pulled out a knife out of his hoodie pocket and ran up to him taking a few swipes. Basil expertly dodged all of the attacks. By the way the attacker was swinging the blade around he could tell he was still new to using a knife. Basil grabbed his wrist and bent it back, forcing him to drop the knife on the ground. With the knife safely out of the way he grabbed Toothpick's arm and threw him in the direction of his friend. He stumbled forward before falling on Linebacker. But he barely budged. Instead he tossed Toothpick out of the way, onto the street like he was an annoying jacket. He shifted his gaze from Matt to him and back and forth. Like a predator picking out the weaker prey.

"Matt! Move! This guy is mine!" Someone shouted from the mist. _I know that voice! It's Wes!_ Matt stepped away from Linebacker as there was the sound of feet running on the asphalt. Wes sprung out of the mist as a man on a mission. His fist was drawn back and his jaw clinched. There was a flash of confusion on Linebacker's face right before Wes' fist connect dead center in his face. Basil could almost feel the air rush to the side as he made the hit. Linebacker took a step back before collapsing into a heap on his friend. Both moaned once before they went unconscious.

"Leave it Wes to punch someone lights out." Matt joked.

"What are you guys doing, fighting these two?" Wes asked as if nothing just happened.

"You see we're helping this guy from these thugs." Basil answered looking back at the man on the ground. He didn't think he moved an inch from when it started. But now he looked even more afraid of Wes than the criminals.

"I just wanna go home!" The man muttered.

"Why don't we get you to the police station?" Basil crouched down next to him. The man nodded in way that remind him of a little kid nodding when he was scared.

"I'll lead the way. I passed it on my way here." Wes offered.

"But the way you walk to school; you don't go anywhere near the station." Basil said confused.

"I know. I got really turned around in this fog." He nodded.

"Besides I don't think I'm going to get out of trouble without a note from the police." Matt laughed.

The police station was well lit up but they still were really closed to walking right by. They gave the man a blanket to wrap himself in and a steaming drink. He told them what happened to him. Basil, Matt, and Wes were there for a good thirty minutes before the police even consider letting them go.

"So you said your names are Matt and Basil Burnish and Wes Strollin." A policeman read off a paper. He took another long glance at Basil. "Alright boys you can leave now." He put his hands on his waist.

"Sorry but could you write me a note for being late? Otherwise my teacher will have my head!" Matt asked. The policeman gave him a strange look in return.

"Don't you know all schools are closed because of this fog? Heck! The whole town in closed because no one can see!" He told them. Basil was stunned. The weather supervisor wouldn't close school if they were experiencing an arctic blizzard. He could tell from the look on Matt's face he was disappointed by the fact he missed the chance to have slept in.

"Alright time for more training!" Wes said getting excited.

"But how do we get back? We can't see." Basil asked.

"I'll give you boys a lift." The policeman offered.

Mom met them at the door when they stepped out of the car. Matt closed the door and the car drove off.

"Sorry guys, I didn't realize everything was closed till after you left." Mom apologized holding the door open for them. Matt fallowed her inside but just as Basil's foot was halfway in he felt he was being watched from outside. He looked back but he still could only see fog. It didn't feel threatening, just important. Basil walked inside, closing the door behind him, making sure it was locked. He went upstairs to change but when he opened his door he found someone already inside. Reiji sat in his desk chair, spun to angle so he could watch him come in. Basil closed the door firmly behind him.

"You do realize you're trespassing." He told him calmly.

"Don't worry I'll leave soon enough. I have to go over and start training Kayson." Reiji said watching him drop his bag down.

"Kayson? It's Wes that's up first." Basil said confused.

"Wes and the rest of you already have your trainers. But I need to make sure Kayson is ready to fight if he is needed." Reiji explained. _Trainer? I don't know who my trainer is._

"The reason I came over here is to explain the importance of this fighting. Basil, the Elemental rings were created to store incredible powers. The powers of nature itself. Together they have the power to tamper with the Space-Time fabric. Before ancient times the Earth was under a great threat. So seven people with the bravery and courage to try and stop it, harness the pure energy of the elements temporally to create the rings. After a great and destructive battle, the heroes managed to win. But they soon figured out that after the battle the rings contained too much power that if returned, it would destroy the whole planet. Time went on, things healed, but new darkness emerged as well. The heroes knew that they would not live forever so they passed down the rings to a new set of protectors for them to use if another threat should arise. If that power fell into the wrong hands it could make anything anyone had ever done been for nothing." Reiji let him absorbing the information for a minute before continuing. "The real name of the rings is the Key rings but we call them the Elemental rings as their adoptive name…Basil your attribute is the Moon. The most mysterious of all. Everyone who held this ring tend to keep to themselves but they have a different side that is kept under wraps. Like the dark side of the moon…The reason I'm telling you this is because I your mind is the only that can grasp it and use it to your advantage. Kayson is going to need you if he is to become the next boss." The room fell into a tense silence.


End file.
